Officials at the State Fair of West Virginia are excited to announce country legends Clay Walker and Tracy Byrd to the 2022 Concert Series on Sunday, Aug. 14, at 7 p.m. Tickets will go on sale Friday, Mar. 25, at 10 a.m.
“Having Clay Walker and Tracy Byrd at the State Fair of West Virginia was an easy decision,” State Fair CEO Kelly Collins stated. “These country legends put on a fantastic show that you won’t want to miss,”
Tickets will only be available via ETIX at http://statefairofwv.com/entertainment/ or by calling 1-800-514-ETIX (3849) Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. or Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets will not be sold at the State Fair Box Office until later in the spring.
The 10-day State Fair of West Virginia is celebrating 97 years of “Mountain Grown Fun,” on Aug. 11-22. The State Fair of West Virginia, with a $13.8 million economic impact on the state of West Virginia, is a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation committed to the traditions of agriculture, family entertainment, and education. For more information, please visit www.statefairofwv.com, or follow fair events on Facebook and Twitter.
Clay Walker
Can Clay Walker deliver? That’s the question, and he’s not afraid of it. In fact, he’s positioned himself to answer it squarely – one way or another – this year. With new creative and business teams and a deep well of hard-earned wisdom, Walker relishes the challenge. “I’ve prepared myself for this moment in my career – mentally, physically and artistically,” he says. “I’ve never been more ready.”
In a sense, the question is absurd for a recording artist, songwriter and entertainer with 31 charted singles, a dozen No. 1s, four platinum albums and decades of performances to his credit. Titles spanning 15 years and still receiving strong airplay include “Live Until I Die,” “Dreaming With My Eyes Open,” “This Woman And This Man,” “Hypnotize The Moon,” “Rumor Has It,” “Then What,” “The Chain Of Love,” “I Can’t Sleep” and “She Won’t Be Lonely Long.”
Walker’s still robust touring schedule – 80 shows last year – continues to fuel interest in his releases, most recently the 76-song compilation Clay Walker – The Complete Albums 1993-2002. Among them is the chart-topper “If I Could Make A Living,” which just celebrated the 25th anniversary of reaching its airplay peak, despite its singer showing no slippage in his celebrated matinee idol looks and megawatt smile. Meanwhile, Walker’s native Texas continues to be a centerpiece, whether it’s performing the National Anthem at the 2019 World Series in Houston, or giving back at February 2020’s Basin Strong concert benefiting victims and families of the recent shootings in Odessa.
Can Clay Walker deliver? Is he afraid of the question? Hardly. “If I had to lay out my ambition, it’s to become a master at what I do,” he says. “I’m a long ways from it, but that’s exciting as well because there’s a lot of road left.”
Tracy Byrd
Tracy Byrd became a household name on the Country Music Scene in 1993 when his third single, called “Holdin’ Heaven,” off of his MCA Records, self-titled debut album, hit #1 on the Billboard Country Charts. The Album also included the remake hit of Johnny Paycheck’s “Someone to Give my Love to” cementing Byrd as a Traditional Country Troubadour. The Debut Album went on to be certified Gold, a award signifying sales in excess of 500,000 copies.
Byrd left the major label and released an album on his own, appropriately titled, “Different Things” Although this project was not commercially successful, it garnered Byrd his highest Critical acclaim of his career with Billboard magazine choosing it as one of their Top 10 Country Albums of the Year. Through all of these years Byrd became a promoter favorite on the road, performing over 4000 exciting shows across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe, and Australia from 1992 until 2009! He then say’s he needed a break to take care of himself and his most precious thing, his family, wife Michelle, daughter Evee, and son’s Logan and Jared, who had taken a backseat to his career for years. He did not perform from 2010-2013, but in 2014 he got back to the music with a new band and a new found sobriety and love of the thing he enjoys so much. Say’s Byrd, “These day’s my life has great balance, with my music being a part of it, not all of it. I can honestly say I have never enjoyed it more!”
Byrd went back in the studio in June of 2016 and started work on his first project in 10 years. Recorded completely in Tyler, Texas, at Rosewood Studios, that album is appropriately titled, All American Texan, which is exactly what he is and has always been. This album features 8 tracks written by Byrd, a fact he is very proud of. The album was released in October of 2016 and has been very well received by his fans and critics alike.
